Immunity improvement strategy

There is no need to buy hundreds of immunoglobulins or imported multivitamins. The most effective way for ordinary people to improve their immunity is to eat enough high-quality nutrition, get enough rhythmic sleep, do exercises that suit themselves, and reduce chronic emotional exhaustion. Doing these four things is 10 times more effective than spending thousands of dollars on health care products.

To be honest, the first reaction of many people to improve their immunity is to stock up on various supplements. In fact, it is completely unnecessary. At present, there is no unified conclusion in the academic circles on whether the general population should take supplements regularly: the view of evidence-based medicine is that as long as you can eat one egg, 300ml of milk, half a pound of green leafy vegetables, and a palm of meat every day, there is no need to supplement vitamins at all. However, supporters of functional medicine believe that many people now eat takeaways that are heavy in oil and salt all year round, and their intake of vegetables and high-quality protein is generally not up to standard. Proper supplementation of multivitamins and vitamin D can indeed help improve immunity. My own experience is that if you often eat takeout, you can just prepare an ordinary multivitamin that costs more than ten yuan for 100 tablets. You don’t need to buy imported products that cost hundreds of yuan. The active ingredients are not much different. I used to help my cousin who eats takeout every day adjust her diet. I add an egg and half a catty of spinach every day, and occasionally take a vitamin D tablet. She has not had the problem of catching colds when the season changes for most of half a year. Oh, by the way, don’t take supplements blindly. In the past, a friend took too much vitamin A in order to improve his immunity. Instead, he lost his hair for half a month, which was not worth the loss.

Eating the right foods builds a storehouse of raw materials for the immune system. If you don’t sleep well, you won’t be able to work well no matter how many raw materials you have. Many people think that they must go to bed before 11 o'clock to be healthy, but this is not necessarily the case. The traditional health school emphasizes taking naps, believing that 23:00 to 3:00 am is the time for the body to detoxify, and staying up late will damage the immune system. However, sleep research in recent years has also pointed out that as long as your sleep cycle is fixed and you can sleep for a complete cycle of 7-8 hours a day, even if you go to bed at 1 am and start at 9 am, your immune level will not drop significantly. My friends who work in new media maintain this schedule all year round, and their immune indicators in physical examinations are all normal. On the contrary, those who force themselves to go to bed at 10 o'clock every day and toss and turn until 12 o'clock are still awake, always feel tired and catch colds at every turn. The core is actually the duration of deep sleep. If you watch short videos for half an hour before going to bed, your brain will always be in a state of excitement, and deep sleep will not account for enough. The activity of immune cells can be reduced by up to 30%, which is greater than staying up late at night.

As for the relationship between exercise and immunity, different circles have quite different opinions. Fitness enthusiasts generally believe that the higher the muscle mass, the better the basic immunity. Strength training three times a week can indeed help increase the activity of immune cells. However, the traditional Chinese medicine health circle recommends mild exercises such as Baduanjin and Zhanzhuang. They feel that strenuous exercise will consume energy and reduce immunity. In fact, both statements are correct. The key is not to exceed your own endurance: for people who do not exercise at all, suddenly running 5 kilometers will most likely cause short-term immune suppression and make them more likely to catch a cold. It is better to walk 20 minutes more after get off work every day, or follow the video to do 10 minutes of Baduanjin, and slowly increase the amount of activity. I once had a friend who ran 10 kilometers every day in order to run a marathon, but ended up catching two colds in a row. Later, he changed to walking for 30 minutes plus 20 minutes of strength training every day, but he never got sick again. Downstairs, Aunt Zhang stands for 20 minutes every day. She suffered from bronchitis in the winter and has not had it in the past two years. What suits her is the best.

The most easily missed immune killer is actually the bad things you hide in your heart and don’t say out loud. I once had a colleague who was working on a project for three consecutive months. He was anxious every day until two or three in the morning and was still changing plans. He had a string of herpes zoster on his mouth. When he went to see a doctor, he was told that it was a weakened immunity caused by long-term stress. There is no standard solution to the method of emotional regulation: psychiatrists will recommend that you do mindful breathing and keep an emotional diary. Some people think it is more useful to have a hot pot with friends and complain for half an hour, or even sing songs at home for an hour. There is no need to force yourself to be an "emotionally stable adult". It is much better to vent your emotions in time than to hold them in.

In fact, after all, there is no 100% perfect immunity-boosting strategy. It is the result of one meal, one sleep, and one exercise. There is no need to pursue one step. Even if you stay up half an hour less late at night and eat one more bite of vegetables today, it will help your immune system. After all, compared to spending money on various Internet celebrity health products, living a good life is the cheapest and most effective way to improve your immunity.